Migraines and other Big Headaches
by Nevada11
Summary: With Andy Flynn's help, Sharon Raydor deals with multiple headaches. Set after "Long Shot." Repost from 2012.


"Hello."

The voice wasn't the one Lieutenant Andy Flynn was expecting when he punched in the Captain of the Major Crimes Division's cell number. "Is this Rusty?"

"Yeah."

"Why are you answering the Captain's cell phone?"

"It kept ringing and she's sick."

Andy waited a beat and when the kid didn't elaborate, asked, "What do you mean sick? How sick?"

"Uh, Sharon's still in bed. She said something about a migraine when I went in and tried to give her the phone. She's always up before me so I think she must really feel bad. I don't know what I should do. Should I go to school? I've got a history test today. Or should I—"

Andy glanced at his watch. He had time to swing by the Captain's condo before going to the latest crime scene. Provenza probably had everything under control anyway. "Do you need a ride? I'm in my car now, about 10 minutes away."

"No. I was hitching a ride with a friend today. He's waiting downstairs. But I don't want to just leave her."

Andy could hear the anxiety in the teen's voice. Only a few months ago that he'd described the kid to Sharon Raydor as a "little psycho." Rusty had come a long way since last summer. Everyone knew that most of that change was due to Sharon's steadying influence and unquestioned affection for the teen.

"I'll check on her." Andy wasn't at all sure the Captain was going to appreciate the intrusion, but if she was really sick and he didn't..."You go to school. I'll handle it."

"Are you sure? I don't know if she'll answer the door. Should I wait to give you my keys?"

"Good idea. I'll see you in a few minutes."

* * *

Andy rang the doorbell before using Rusty's key. He didn't want to catch her unawares in case she was up and about.

"Captain?" He had dropped Rusty off once at the condo before when the Captain had been tied up with a case, but he hadn't been inside. The open layout and big windows appealed to him. He was surprised at the color scheme–burnt oranges and reds. He would have pegged her as someone liking colder colors, blues and grays. The ballet posters on the wall behind her desk added to his confusion. For a moment he wondered if he was in the wrong place.

"Captain?" Walking down the hallway, he knocked softly on what he assumed was her bedroom door. Hearing nothing he opened it slowly, praying she didn't mistake him for an intruder and pull her handgun.

"Rusty? You're going to be late to school."

It was dark in the room, the only illumination coming from slivers of light leaking from the edges of the blinds covering large windows set in the exterior wall. Her whispered voice came from under a thick burgundy and gold comforter, bunched on the far side of a king-sized bed.

He walked over to the bed, circling around to the side she was occupying. "No. It's Andy Flynn. Rusty was worried about you. I sent him on to school and told him I'd take care of you. He said you had a migraine."

"I'm sorry. He shouldn't have...I'll be okay in a few hours if I can sleep...Just...go back to work."

"I'm here now. You might as well let me help. Do you have some medication that you can take?" He couldn't see her. He was still talking to a lump under the comforter.

"No. Refill ran out." She shifted under the comforter. "Took some Advil. Just waiting for it to take the edge off. Please just go back to work. I'll be fine."

"Yeah, right." Flynn glanced at the side table and noted the half-filled water glass and the empty prescription bottle lying on its side with the cap off. One of his sisters suffered from migraines and he knew that over the counter drugs wouldn't help much, if at all."

He walked over to the in suite bathroom and flipped on a light. Finding a washcloth he ran cold water over it, wrung it out, then returned to her bedside.

Folding the wet cloth into a rectangular shape, he sat on the edge of the bed, tentatively lifting a corner of the comforter. He saw bare shoulders and back...and a lot of tousled, long red hair. She was on her side, turned away from him.

"Put this on the back of your neck."

"Andy, go away." She didn't roll over or make any move to take the cloth. "The light hurts my eyes."

He growled, moving her hair to one side and locating her neck. He placed the cloth over the base of her neck and held it there.

"Andy, please."

He noted from the softer tone of her voice that the cold compress must have felt good, even if she didn't appreciate his continuing presence.

Leaving the cloth on her neck, he grabbed the prescription bottle and pulled out his cell phone.

* * *

Sanchez handed him the small white drugstore bag and a large pizza box.

"How's she doing?"

Andy sighed. "In pain but she won't let me take her to the doctor and she can't keep anything on her stomach. The Advil she took came right back up. I'm hoping," he shook the small bag, "this will help. Thanks for picking it up. And for the food. I'm starving."

"You're welcome. Just don't tell the Lieutenant I was here. He's already pissed that you took a personal day instead of coming in."

"He doesn't need me, she does," Andy said. "Besides, this case has City Hall cover up written all over it. Despite his alibi, no question the Mayor's aide killed the intern. There was plenty of evidence of an affair. Tao told me his prints were all over the crime scene. If you guys find the gun and break the alibi, it will be all over but the crying. You know dealing with politicians isn't my strong suit. I'll let Taylor and Provenza find a way to both close the case and let the Mayor save face. Again."

* * *

Sharon could hear their voices. They were saying something about a case. She should be working, not here. She raised her head out from under the comforter for a second, big mistake. Andy had left her bedroom door open and the light from the hallway was like a knife stabbing behind her eyes.

It had been almost six months since her last full blown migraine. She remembered it well. It was the evening after she exposed the leak in the Major Crimes Division. The whole emotional confrontation with Sergeant Gabriel and his fiancé and then the stress of telling Deputy Chief Johnson had taken a toll. She'd missed two days of work that time. She knew exactly who to blame for her current headache. Daniel Dunn might have signed away his parental rights the day before, but despite what she had told Rusty, she was fairly sure she hadn't seen the last of him. She should have known to get her prescription refilled.

The mattress moved as someone sat on the edge. "Here, try and sit up. I've got your migraine medicine."

She sighed. Apparently Andy Flynn was not going to go away either.

Sitting up, she kept the sheet tucked up under her arms. Her low cut navy silk nightgown was comfortable, but unfortunately would expose more of her body than she was comfortable displaying to a coworker. She took the pill and a small sip of water. She really didn't want to throw up in front of him again.

* * *

The sound of whispered voices woke her. Or maybe it was the flickering light from the television. Or maybe it was the smell of pizza. Or maybe it was the sensation of someone slowly massaging her scalp.

The pain in her head was in hiding at the moment. Fearing its return she tried not to move. Opening her eyes, mindful of the light in the room, she realized that she was lying on her side, her head on top of a pillow that was across Andy Flynn's lap. He was stretched out on her bed and he appeared to be multitasking. He was watching a baseball game on her muted bedroom television, rubbing her head with one hand, holding a slice of pizza in the other, and talking to Provenza using the speaker phone option on his cell phone. The phone was lying on the bed, next to the greasy pizza box.

Her first thought was to chide him for the pizza crumbs he was getting all over her bed. The second was that she didn't want to do anything that might cause him to remove his hand from her head.

"You still haven't found the gun? Are you sure Warren Smith's alibi is holding up? Video can be changed. Did you talk to someone who was actually at the press conference and saw him?"

She could hear Provenza's answer. "Tao and Buzz say the video hasn't been edited. Surprise, the Mayor's aide didn't do it! We're running out of ideas here, when are you coming in?"

"I'm not. See if Warren Smith was involved with more than one woman. I know you said he wasn't married, but check for a jealous girlfriend."

Sharon reluctantly broke her silence. "Not just women."

"Hey, you're awake." The hand Andy had on her head stilled.

"Tell Provenza not to limit the suspects to jealous women."

Provenza's voice boomed from the cell phone, startling her. "I can hear you, Captain. Can you hear me? How are you feeling?"

"Not great. Don't yell. And don't jump to conclusions about the aide, Lieutenant."

Andy Flynn resumed his massage of her head. He also picked up another slice of pizza. She saw a slice of bell pepper drop off onto her designer linens.

"Andy, be careful, you're staining my sheets." Too late she realized that might not have been the best thing to say aloud with Provenza listening.

Provenza coughed. "Uh, all indications were that he was straight, Captain."

"Everything isn't always about sex. Maybe this murder has nothing to do with the supposed affair. The murder might be work related. The powers that be might not be trying to cover up the affair, the rumors of an affair may actually be the cover up. Find out what the aide..." She remembered the words Andy Flynn had yelled at her the first day she took over Major Crimes, "Find out what Warren Smith was working on and who benefited if he wasn't around anymore. Ignore the affair."

Andy's hand moved down to her neck, working the knotted muscles, the heat of his hand melting her pain away.

"Don't stop," she mumbled. He really had wonderful hands."Harder, press harder right there."

"What? What did you say? Ignore the affair?" Provenza coughed. "I didn't quite catch what you said afterwards."

Flynn put down the pizza and picked up the phone from the bed. "Forget it! She was talking to me. I'm going to have to hang up now, I need to use both hands."

"Okay. Uh, Captain, we'll look into it. Hope you feel better soon. And...uh...Flynn. Just keep doing whatever the hell you're doing."

She heard Andy chuckle and a dial tone as Provenza hung up.

"Both hands?" She wasn't sure what he had in mind, but she'd probably let him go too far as it was. Obviously he was attracted to her. If she felt better, she'd know how to let him down gently. Because they absolutely could not get involved.

"Bottled soda. Takes two hands to open."

She heard the hiss of carbonation and the sudden return of the voices of baseball commentators. Instead of feeling relieved, she felt a little annoyed. Maybe disappointed? He was in bed with her and all he could think about was food and baseball?

She rolled over and pulled the comforter back over her head. Her life was just one big headache.

* * *

Andy Flynn smiled. The Captain was right. It wasn't always about sex. But it usually was.

He took another sip of Diet Coke and put the unused pillow behind his head. He figured he just needed to bide his time and let her make the next move. After all, who could resist him?

the end


End file.
